Rookie forward Stefan Legein will no longer be a part of the Syracuse Crunch's playoff push.

Legein packed up his sticks and gear Monday and left Syracuse, on orders of Columbus.

"The decision was made he wasn't going to play here, so Columbus decided to send him home to get started on his summer training,'' said Syracuse coach Ross Yates. "It's a big summer for him.''

Monday was an optional skate, with goalies Dan LaCosta and Adam Munro and a handful of other skaters taking the ice. As of Monday afternoon, about 3,000 tickets for Tuesday's Game 3 vs. Toronto had been sold.

- The Crunch is trying to get a couple of hair stylists to Tuesday's game to give fans Mohawks, either for free or for a small donation to charity.

- If Syracuse beats Toronto and advances to meet Chicago, the Crunch will have faced former franchise landmark players in three straight series. Manitoba had Brad Moran, Toronto has David Ling and Derrick Walser and the Wolves now feature Joe Motzko.

- As if Toronto needed any more problems, my two games there to start the series has convinced me that the Marlies don't even have a home-ice advantage. The older feel of Ricoh Coliseum reminded a lot of the War Memorial, and the Crunch looked very much at home playing there.

And the couple of buses of Syracuse fans who made the trip for Game 2 did a great job making themselves heard. As I was writing my story in the press box after the game, I could hear a succession of cheers coming from the area of the Crunch locker room. You better believe the players appreciate that.

- Syracuse's current hot streak might be unprecedented in the history of the AHL.

Since Feb. 18, the Crunch has played 31 games, including six in the postseason. It has only lost once in regulation, in Game 4 to Manitoba. Overall, its record is 26 wins, one regulation loss, one overtime loss and three shootout losses.

The only comparable streak was turned in by Cleveland in 1948. That team was 21-0-6 in its last 27 games in the regular season and then went 8-1 in winning the Calder Cup. So it closed 29-1-6.